Anne Buckley - Talking Baby: Helping your child discover language

First published in 2016 by Finch Publishing Pty Limited, Sydney, Australia

This edition published in 2019 by
CANTERBURY UNIVERSITY PRESS
University of Canterbury
Private Bag 4800, Christchurch
NEW ZEALAND
www.canterbury.ac.nz/engage/cup

Copyright 2019 Margaret Maclagan and Anne Buckley
The moral rights of the authors have been asserted.

All images courtesy of iStock.com

Every effort has been made to trace and acknowledge owners of copyright material. If notified of any errors or omissions the publisher will be pleased to rectify them at the earliest opportunity.

ISBN 978-1-98-850316-5 (print)
ISBN 978-1-98-850320-2 (epub)
ISBN 978-1-98-850321-9 (mobi)

A catalogue record for this book is available from the National Library of New Zealand.

This book is copyright. Except for the purpose of fair review, no part may be stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including recording or storage in any information retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. No reproduction may be made, whether by photocopying or by any other means, unless a licence has been obtained from the publisher or its agent.

Front cover image: iStock.com/WhitneyLewisPhotography

The baby brain is an incredible learning machine. Its future to a great extent is in our hands.

National Geographic, January 2015 (p. 76)

People used to learn about what is normal in language development by watching older members of their extended families interacting with young children. Now with smaller families, people often learn by reading instead. This book is written primarily for parents, but also for grandparents, for those living or working with young children, and for those who are simply curious about language and the way its learnt. It takes a child-led approach to encouraging language development.

Throughout the book well use they, them and their to refer to your baby or young child to avoid he or she. Well also give ages when language developments usually happen, but all ages are approximate and can vary by at least six months in either direction. Language development is just like motor development: a milestone like running, which usually occurs at about eighteen months, can occur as early as twelve months or as late as 24 months and still be well within the normal developmental range. Similarly first words, which usually appear by about twelve months, can appear anywhere from nine to twenty months.

This book describes in detail language development for English-speaking children. It was written in, but is not restricted to, an Australasian context. Many of the patterns of language vii development described here will also apply to other languages and cultures, especially the development of early sounds and meanings.

Lots of children will learn to speak more than one language through hearing them in their community and in their home and most will do this with ease. We recognise the importance of parents using their first and most fluent language with their children to support language development. We also recognise the value of specific bilingual approaches, such as the teaching of te reo Mori to children in New Zealand because language is a cultural treasure or taonga.

The books we suggest in the various chapters and at the end are well-known childrens books that are readily available in libraries and bookshops theyre meant as examples of useful books you could use rather than a prescription of what you should go out and buy.

Chapters 1 to 6 describe your babys language development, alongside their physical development, until your baby is about eighteen months old. After this time, language development becomes much more complicated too much is happening for us to be able to keep describing everything developmentally, so the structure of the book changes from Chapter 7 onwards.

If youve ever tried to learn another language youll know how many different things there are to learn. You need to learn the words, the sounds, how the words fit together and all sorts of information about what you should and shouldnt say to particular people. As your baby learns English, theyve got to learn just as much. They have to learn the words and sounds of viii English. They have to learn how to put the words together and they have to learn how to use what theyve learnt. For example, theyll learn that they can talk in one way with their friends but that they need to talk differently with their grandparents.